


Soulless

by Anestshia



Category: Original Work
Genre: Angst, Blood, Blood Drinking, Blood Kink, Complete, Electrocution, Flashbacks, Frot, Hand Jobs, Hunters, M/M, Needles, Orgasm, Porn, Romance, Time Skips, Vampires, Violence, Werewolf, Yaoi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-21
Updated: 2013-07-26
Packaged: 2017-12-20 22:58:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,441
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/892885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anestshia/pseuds/Anestshia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alexander and Mikal are best friends, they have been ever since Mikal met Alexander soon after his family was killed by a feral vampire. Alexander has protected Mikal but Mikal isn't helpless for long. Alexander is apprehensive when Mikal tells him that he has joined the hunters association as an elite vampire hunter. His best friend doesn't know it but Alexander is a vampire and this change in his life is not a good one. He just dreads the day Mikal figures him out and what will happen afterwards.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Soulless

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Natalanisha](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Natalanisha/gifts).



> This is a multichapter, six part story that I wrote for my gf, Natalanisha that revolves around Alexander and Mikal.
> 
> Alexander, Benedict, Isabella, Warrick, Jun and Majo belong to me.  
> Mikal and Meredith belong to the wonderful Natalanisha.  
> I have permission to write and post this story!
> 
> This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The Author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.
> 
> Well, I hope you all like it! Thanks you so much for reading and don't forget to feed the author~

“Holy water, stake, garlic… and a torch to simulate sunlight.” Mikal smiled widely at Alexander then, waving his hands above the brand new vampire killing kit that he’d been given for his graduation, the shining tools that were guaranteed to take down even the strongest blood sucker lying in stark relief against black felt inside the stained box. He’d been friends with the raven since he’d been a kid so it was just a given that he would be here during this monumental change in his life. Mikal had expected him to be happy about it but Alexander just looked kind of… apprehensive. It was making his own excitement die down a little. 

“So, you’re officially a hunter now?” Alexander asked, crossing his arms over his chest and looking up at the other man, worry and even a touch of fear showing in his eyes. “Don’t you know how dangerous a job that is? Think about what happened to your family.” 

“That’s exactly why I have to do this, Alex!” Mikal grabbed his friend’s shoulders then, shaking him a little as he spoke. “I’ve been specially trained in the art of assassinating vampires; I’m finally going to get my revenge on those monsters! Come on, be happy with me, I’m finally going to get to stake those murderers out in the sunlight, I’m going to get to see them turn to dust!” 

Alexander couldn’t hide his wince completely then, his smile forced and faked as he pushed Mikal back. “I understand you want to get your revenge, Mikal, but what if this… thing doesn’t work?” He asked, gesturing jerkily towards the kit still lying open on the table between them. “I mean, why would any of this work on a vampire? What is the success rate of these kits? Has anyone actually killed a vampire with one of them and come back to tell the tale?” 

Mikal huffed, his arms crossing over his chest as he fell heavily back down on his chair, the town clock chiming in the background, signaling the end of the farming day. “What’s wrong with you, Alex? Weren’t you all for this before? Why wouldn’t the kit work, everyone knows that vampires are weak to that stuff. As long as I can knock the monster out, it will turn to dust as soon as the sun rises.” 

“But that’s what I’m talking about. Why would vampires turn to dust in the sunlight?” Alexander asked, reaching up to rub between his eyes, a headache forming behind them. “Wouldn’t that just be so… inconvenient? It’s their goal in life to hide their true personas from humans; wouldn’t it be counterproductive to be allergic to sunlight? It would make pinpointing them so much easier.” Alexander leaned forward then, his fingers hovering over but never once touching a single item in the box. “I, personally, think a stake to the heart would just piss them off. Yeah, they might die of blood loss if they don’t feed soon afterwards but it’s not going to make them poof into dust. Then the garlic, if anything, pumpkins would be better, they stink to high heavens.” He couldn’t help wrinkling his nose then, shaking his head. “As for the torch, if they really can’t go out in the daytime, what do they light their house with at night?” 

The fact that everything Alexander said made sense actually annoyed Mikal a bit. He loved his friend but he was far too logical sometimes. “They never said why any of it worked, it just does.” He reached into the box then, picking up the clear crystal bottle with a cross shaped stopper, holding it out to the other man. “So, what about this?” 

Alexander instinctively jerked back, chuckling nervously and shaking his head, waving away the very breakable bottle. “Well, if they really are godless creatures… holy water will… be the only useful thing in that box.” 

“At least we agree on that.” Mikal dropped the bottle haphazardly back into the box then, grinning as he sat down. “You’ll see, Alex, I’m going to be the best hunter out there. I’ll eradicate those soulless blood suckers once and for all.” 

That was what Alexander was worried about. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Five years passed as if just a day, leaving Alexander feeling much, much older as he watched Mikal grow into the picture perfect hunter. He had found out he was right and the kit was useless but that hadn’t stopped his friend. He’d quickly avenged his family, the feral vampires that had attacked and killed so many of them burned to dust on a holy water infused funeral pyre. He was the top in his field, the person all other hunters went to when they had a question about vampires. It should be quite the achievement but it just made Alexander uncomfortable and debating if their friendship was worth continuing. 

But then he’d remember he loved Mikal and he was screwed either way he went. 

“I didn’t know you were hom…” Alexander stopped just a couple steps into the workshop, shrinking back from the items spread out on the desk. He had to remember that Alexander had long ago learned to make his own holy water; he’d just never walked in, in the middle of it before. It took him a bit but he eventually sat across from his old friend, hiding his instinctual reaction to the ingredients lying so innocently spread across the floral patterned cloth, ready to be mixed together in the other man’s mortar and pestle. “When did you get back?” 

“Last night, it was a hell of a fight.” Mikal answered, plucking up another one of the herbs and dropping it in the pestle, starting to grind it with practiced movements before sprinkling a bit of it in the bowl of water and mixing it with his fingers. He looked up at Alexander as his hands moved, grinning at him. “But we found another nest, nearly a dozen of them and we took them all out. It was amazing!” 

“But were they all bad?” Alexander grumbled under his breath, shaking his head when Mikal asked him to repeat what he’d said. “That’s good for you but… haven’t you gone far enough? You said you were just doing this to get revenge for your family. You’ve done that, isn’t it time to… stop?” 

“Stop? Never, not while a single one of those soulless creatures walk this earth!” Mikal’s hands swept in a grand gesture as he spoke, the water still clinging to the tips of his fingers, seemingly innocuous, flying through the air. 

It was too quick for Alexander to avoid, his body jerking when every bit of skin the drops touched burned, sending him clattering right off of his chair and to the floor. His hand came up, instinctively covering the area that was burning like fire had touched it on his cheek, his hands shaking as he held in a pained hiss. It wouldn’t have been so bad but he’d been on his own hunt and he’d never risk feeding when he was working with a partner. Mikal was in front of him before he got his bearings again, a pained shout escaping him when his friend touched his neck and wrist, the residual holy water on his hands searing his skin. “Don’t touch me!” 

The blue of his eyes were ringed with red when he looked up at Mikal, the pain that the few drops of holy water had caused showing clearly on his face. A few drops were more than enough to make a vampire hurt and he couldn’t figure out why for the life of him. His heart broke at the horrified look on Mikal’s face. He knew what he was seeing… a monster, a monster he could burn with barely seasoned holy water, a monster he’d just moments earlier sworn to eradicate. 

He couldn’t take the chance anymore. 

Mikal’s voice was like a roaring in his head as he pulled himself to his feet, shoving past the man and out the door he’d entered just minutes earlier. It hurt, it hurt so bad. It wasn’t the burning, no, the burning was already fading. No, his heart hurt. Hah! Soulless? He wished. A soulless creature couldn’t fall in love. He knew he would never have been able to love Mikal physically, that it was even more taboo than him being a vampire but, ones heart did not always agree with ones mind. He could hear shouting behind him, the sound of the door slamming open making him run even faster, disappearing into the dense woods behind the families estate. He didn’t want to die; he’d never be able to rest if his best friend killed him. 

If Alexander had turned around, if he’d even looked back, he would have seen just how wrong his thinking was. Mikal had been scared, horrified, yes, but not because Alexander was a vampire. No, he’d been horrified he hurt his friend… had apparently been hurting him for years without even knowing it. Mikal fell to his knees when Alexander disappeared, his eyes wide as he looked down at his hands. “He’s a vampire?” He could still see droplets of water clinging to his hands, the holy water he’d crafted himself, a special blend created to cause maximum pain to vampires… vampires that, up to that moment, he’d thought were all evil. 

“What else don’t I know? What else am I wrong about?” The thoughts weighed heavily on Mikal’s mind as he sat on the damp grass, storm clouds brewing above him. But he didn’t move, not even when rain soaked through his clothes and washed the damning holy water away. “How many innocent creatures have I killed?” 

Had any of them been soulless?


	2. Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After five long years of searching for his friend, Mikal finally gets a solid lead on where he might find Alexander

“It’s been five years, Mikal. You’re not going to find him. You should just-”

“Shut up!” Mikal looked absolutely murderous, stormy eyes focused on his ‘partner’ as he jerkily packed his duffle bag. Marc usually kept quiet about his personal hunt but recently he wouldn’t shut up about it. He just kept telling him, over and over again, to give up. It was absolutely infuriating! “Alex is my best friend. Hell! It might have been more by now if I hadn’t fucked up so royally! I’m going to find him; I don’t care if it takes the rest of my life. I’ll come back as a god damned reaper if I have too! He’ll live a hell of a lot longer than me as long as those stupid vampire hunters keep their dirty hand off of him.”

“’Those’ vampire hunters? Mikal, you’re-”

“I haven’t hunted a vampire since the day he left and you damned well know it.” Mikal had thrown out his kit and destroyed every jar of holy water he had less than twenty four hours after his friend had run away. It had certainly opened his eyes. He had run into vampires since then, yes, but not a single damned one of them had tried to attack him when he proved he was unarmed. How many of the ones he’d killed would have backed off if he hadn’t had a katana to their neck? They were actually helping him now. The one that had given him this tip, a woman named Isabella, was a noble vampire. But, she seemed surprisingly knowledgeable about Alexander.

“Every tip you’ve gotten about him has led nowhere, Mikal. Why would this be any different?” The redhead winced when he was pinned with yet another murderous gaze, holding his hands up. “I get you want to find him but you’ve been trying for five years. Maybe he doesn’t want to be found?” He sighed then, pushing his hair back. “How many vampires did you kill before the accident? How many of those could have been his family? His father, mother, siblings? Children? I know you don’t want to give in but… this is frivolous. No one wants to say it but this is going to drive you insane. You have to stop.”

Mikal threw the book he was holding onto the table, a boom echoing through the room as he grabbed Marc, yanking hard on his shirt. “You have no fucking right to tell me what to do! If I recall correctly, you used your first ten years at the organization on the ‘frivolous’ hunt for the god of death so you could get your dead mate back, didn’t you?” He shoved Marc back when the man deflated, grabbing the book and dropping it in his bag before picking it up. “Now, either you can come with me and help or stay here and wallow in your own self pity. I don’t care. I’m going to look for Alex.”

He walked out of the room alone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A long, thin, cigarette smoldered between Isabella’s fingers, the only illumination in the room as she watched the moon, ashes falling off the end of the burning stick. A perfectly sculpted eyebrow rose when her brother walked into the room. Their looks favored each other so much that many thought they were twins. Their black hair so pure it shone blue in the moonlight, their eyes like sparkling springs of pure water that could quickly bleed to blood red. Yes, their family all carried black Irish genes even though they had begun long before that small country had. “The little hunter is coming.” Her voice was like a purr, a mischievous look crossing her face as she raised the cigarette, pulling burning smoke into her lungs. “Is our so very troublesome brother assured to stay put?”

“He will sleep for at least seventy two hours. If the hunter doesn’t show up by then, I cannot promise that he won’t slip through his fingers again.” Benedict responded, settling his long, lean body in the specially made window seat. His pale skin shown in the moonlight, a soft sigh escaping him as he basked in the aura of the night. “Alexander is so very intent on staying away from this man, are you certain it’s our place to orchestrate this meeting?”

“He is suffering from love sickness.” Isabella responded simply, black nail tipped fingers expertly flicking ashes off of the end of the cigarette. “I have watched him, the hunter. I have watched the way he interacts with our kind. In five years, he hasn’t hurt a single one of us that did not deserve violence. If only Alex could see this, I’m sure he would be more than willing to associate with him again. It took him a long time to mature, Benedict.” She stood from her seat then, not having a moment’s hesitation in her decision to sprawl across her brother’s lap instead, holding the cigarette up to his lips. “It is past time for him to accept his love. It may be hard in these times but I see a future where they will be able to openly love each other, just as husband and wife do now.”

Benedict drew on the acrid smoke, tilting his head up and slowly blowing it out, watching as the gray plume rose towards the ceiling. “Even if we do not interfere, we will have to observe their meeting. We cannot fully trust this hunter, after all. He could just be putting on a rather genius act. We have seen more elaborate ones in our life time, after all.”

Isabella nodded, lifting the cigarette back to her own lips, her head resting on her brother’s chest as she gazed out the window. “We will watch.” She agreed, looking up at the man after that. “And we will have our own conversation with the hunter before we let him anywhere near our little brother.” They might be vampires but that didn’t stop them from being highly protective. If Mikal so much as harmed a hair on Alexander’s head, his own would be forfeit.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mikal couldn’t help feeling a bit apprehensive as he walked up to the towering castle he’d been told Alexander was staying in. He’d seen the place before but he’d never even thought of looking for his missing friend then. The raven had always spent all of his time at his house… he’d actually assumed he didn’t have one of his own. It wasn’t uncommon in this day and age to be homeless. But it was very uncommon to live in a castle. Even his own family’s estate was nowhere near as opulent. But this is where the woman had said he would be, this is where she said he lived.

Maybe Marc was right and this was just another dead end.

But he couldn’t give up on it without even investigating. Mikal had sworn to go the ends of the earth to look for Alexander and this castle was nowhere near the ends of the earth. He took in a deep breath, steeling himself before he reached up, lifting the heavy knocker and letting it fall. The booming sound made him jump a bit, a soft sound escaping him before he started to calm down again. But, seconds later, his heart jerked again when the door opened, his breath catching in his throat when he saw who stood behind it.

The man looked so much like Alexander. If not for their difference in height and his slightly more masculine features, Mikal would have sworn he was looking at his twin. His hair, his eyes, god, even his skin were a spitting image of his friends. Now that he thought about it, the woman he’d spoken to had, had the same look. Maybe… just maybe he’d finally found Alex’s family? “I was told to come here by… by Isabella.”

“Follow me.”

Mikal swallowed as he walked into the castle, rubbing his hands against his arms as a sudden chill worked its way through his body. The night was warm enough but the air in the building felt frigid. He wasn’t certain if it was the stone that made up the castles walls or the company but he was suddenly freezing. He cleared his throat when he stepped into another, equally cold, room, biting his lip when he saw the woman sitting in an elaborate dress, one that matched the castles opulence perfectly. The two that clearly appeared to be siblings seemed to belong there. He was the one out of place in the lavish home.

“You’re here just in time.” Isabella said, standing gracefully from the chair, stiletto heels clicking against the hard word floors as she made her way towards the two men. “Any later and he would have awoken and left.”

“There’s less than half an hour left on the charm.” Benedict elaborated, his arm sliding around his sisters waist, the two of them making quite the picture in their formal clothing with the library sprawling behind them. “But we have some questions for you before we tell you where he is.”

Mikal was impatient to see him but he wasn’t going to make these two mad at him. He could feel the difference between them and the throngs of vampires he’d met before. Their… aura was completely different, menacing and strong… absolutely terrifying. He’d have to remember this was what a noble vampire was. “What do you want to know?” He asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

“What do you intend to do with our brother once you find him?” Benedict was the first to ask his question, cocking his head at Mikal.

“What do I intend…” Mikal couldn’t help the perplexed look on his face, his eyebrows drawing down as he thought. “I… want to apologize. I want to be his friend again, I miss him.” He sighed then, pulling his hand through his hair. “I know a lot more now then I knew five years ago. I always thought that vampires were nothing but monsters, that his ideas were so farfetched that they couldn’t be true. If I had known he was a vampire…”

“There are a lot of ifs in life.” Isabella murmured, sighing as she took in a deep breath. “You hurt him, not just with the holy water, your hatred of his species hurt. Every night he would come home, we could see it on his face. Can we be assured that you will never do something like that to him again?”

“Never!” Mikal’s eyes were wide as he stepped forward, invading the siblings personal space. “I didn’t intentionally hurt him to begin with! I would have never done that, I lo-” He cut off his word, swallowing thickly as he stumbled back a little bit. What had he been about to say? Love? What he going to say love? Did he love a man?

“Well, just in time.” Benedict murmured, looking up when he heard a sound in the hallway. “Look like our little brother woke up a little early.”

Mikal made a soft sound then, even his own hearing able to pick up the shuffling sounds moving down the hallway towards the room they were in. He turned back when he heard Isabella giggle, his eyes wide, a little scared. He’d been working towards this moment for five years but now, after his revelation, it scared the hell out of him.

“You might want to go out there before he smells you and runs again.” Isabella said matter of factly, pulling away from her brother to settle in her chair again, delicate fingers opening her long cigar case and drawing one out. “The charm will not keep his senses asleep much longer.”

He didn’t even stick around long enough to see her light the cigarette. Mikal’s heart was in his throat as he ran into the hallway, barely able to breathe when tired, blue eyes looked up at him. He couldn’t believe it. After so long of looking, he was here, he was really here. He was standing right in front of him, the man he now knew he loved in the most forbidden of ways…

“What do you want?”

Alexander.


	3. First Feeding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mikal's lead turned out to bed true, leading him to Alexander's family and Alexander himself. He discovers there that Alexander is very sick and close to dying because of an inability to feed. Alexander won't feed from him until they make a deal.
> 
> Let the blood decide.
> 
> If he keeps it down, they talk, if not, Mikal leaves and they never see each other again.

“What do you want?”

Mikal could barely think. All he wanted to do was run to Alexander and hug him and tell him he was sorry about everything. He wanted to tell him how much he missed him… how much he loved him. It had to be love. He wouldn’t have fought so hard like this for someone he just considered a friend, no matter how good a friend they were. “Alex… I finally found you.” He took a step forward, stopping when the raven shakily moved back. He wasn’t acting normal. In all the years he’d known Alexander, the man had always been very graceful. He’d gotten the nickname panther for that just as much as his hair color. Maybe it was the work of the charm his siblings had put on him? “I… I just want to talk to you…”

Alexander just shook his head, his body trembling as he stumbled, having to lean against a wall for support. The near ghastly pallor of his skin was brought to sudden attention then, his hand almost paper white against the dark grey of the wall. “No… I can’t… I can’t fight like this…”

“Fight? I don’t want to fight you.” Mikal responded, his protective instincts kicking in when Alexander stumbled again, making him move quickly forward. He caught the other man when he tried to move back and ended up tripping over his own feet, the ice cold temperature of his skin making him shiver in sympathy. “God, are you ok? What’s wrong with you?” He held his friend even when he tried to jerk away, lowering him to the ground, sitting with Alexander’s limp body leaning against his own. “Are you sick?”

“He cannot feed.”

Mikal jumped at the deep voice, swallowing as he looked up to see the male that had answered the door standing over them. He held Alexander a bit tighter, knowing he wouldn’t be able to do anything against the man if he tried to take him but that knowledge wasn’t going to stop him from being protective. He swallowed, licking his suddenly dry lips before trying to speak. The red ring around the elder brother’s eyes sent a primal fear through him, his own survival instincts telling him to run but he was going to stay right where he was. The raven needed him. “What do you mean by that?”

“I mean exactly what I said. He can not keep blood down.” Benedict responded, turning away before he even finished speaking. “If he doesn’t find someone he can feed from soon, he will die.”

To a normal person, the words would have sounded crass, like Benedict didn’t care one way or the other. But Mikal had been able to hear the slight tremor in his voice, he’d seen the way his hands clenched and his steps were forced. At least he knew Alexander’s siblings cared about him. He hesitated for a moment before tilting the other man’s head up, forcing deep red eyes to look into his own. He felt the same type of fear he had with the elder brother but there was another feeling underlying it… excitement? Being so close to someone that could snap their jaws and cause his death, it caused an adrenaline rush like he’d never felt before.

“Feed from me.” He said it before the thought even registered in his mind. Mikal wasn’t one to foolishly seek out death and he certainly did not want to perish by his friends hands, but he couldn’t just leave him to die either. If he could help, he was going to. Alexander just looked so bad. His skin was so pale he looked like a ghost, his cheeks sunken, eyes ringed with black even though he’d just slept. He could see his ribs through his shirt, the body against his own much too slim for its own good. He could no more refuse to offer than his friend could refuse to take it.

At least that’s what he thought.

“No.” Alexander responded, his eyes shifting away from Mikal as he forced himself to sit on his own, clenching his hands to stop their shaking. “I will not. I just want to know what you want from me.”

“I just want you back in my life; I was us to be friends again.” Mikal said simply, swallowing thickly as he looked down. “I miss you…”

“I’m a vampire, we can’t be friends.” Alexander countered, his eyes still red, belying the extreme hunger he felt, as he looked over at Mikal. “You are a vampire hunter; it’s a sport to you to hunt us. It would never be safe.”

“I haven’t hunted a single vampire since you left!” Mikal’s voice echoed down the hallway as he answered sharply, grabbing the front of Alexander’s thin, black shirt. “If you had stuck around and talked to me like an adult, maybe you would know that! I was so fucking scared when I hurt you. I just wanted to help and you ran away, you’ve been running from me for five years!”

“I thought you wanted to kill me!” Alexander almost choked on the last word, coughing harshly as his body protested the energy exerted to speak so loudly. “You always talked about killing the ‘monsters’. You talked about how you hunted everyone of them you found and you would never listen to me. You killed so many innocents… I can’t… I can’t be around you anymore.”

“And that’s haunted me for five years. I can’t take back what I did but, at least, let me help now.” When Alexander just looked away, Mikal sighed, formulating a plan in his mind before speaking again. “Ok, I understand. You feel like you can’t trust me anymore, I get it. So, how about this? You feed from me. If you can keep it down, we’ll sit and talk about where our friendship could go. If you can’t, I’ll leave and never come after you again. You’ll be rid of me forever. Let’s… let the blood make the decision.”

“That is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.” Alexander responded but, he was actually considering it. The smell tempting him was clearly very hard to resist. “You promise to stick to it? If I can’t keep it down, you leave and never see me again.”

“I promise.” It would hurt like hell but Mikal would do it. If he was going to love a vampire… if a vampire was going to love him, he would have to be able to feed him. Otherwise, their relationship would crack every time Alexander looked for someone else to fill his need. It went against every fiber of his being as a hunter but the black haired male was more important than any job. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t notice the other man moving until sharp fangs were buried in his neck, his eyes going as wide as saucers at the first pull of his life blood and the very sudden, very uncomfortable erection it caused.

He had not been expecting that.

Mikal had been told it hurt, that a vampire’s bite was the worst agony a human could endure. He’d seen those bitten scream and cry for mercy from the pain… pain he didn’t feel. Quite the opposite, he felt like Alexander’s mouth was around his cock instead of at his throat. He strained with every swallow, the stream of blood seemingly connected to his aroused length. A low groan echoed down the hallway when the vampire’s fangs sank deeper and a cool hand suddenly pressed against his groin. It was the end for him, his head cracking against the wall as he jerked up, the slight pain from the tugging of the fangs in his neck the movement caused only making him cum harder.

By the time he could breathe again, Alexander had pulled back, not a trace of blood on him as he sat in front of him. The raven looked like nothing had happened, like they hadn’t even moved. But Mikal was a mess, his breath coming out in shaky pants as his hips twitched from the pleasure still making him unable to think. As his senses came back to him, he felt the uncomfortable wetness in his pants and the dull throb at the crook of his neck. But even that was fading now, leaving him limp and sated against the wall, his voice gravely as he spoke. “What… the hell was that?”

“That’s what a true feeding feels like.” Alexander responded, his eyes fading back to blue as he sat in front of Mikal, transforming before his eyes. His skin filled out, the ghastly white turning to a healthy pink, the dark circles around his eyes fading as the gauntness in his face disappeared. “Any vampire worth his salt knows how to bring his partner pleasure when he feeds, no matter how weak they are. Even a monster won’t hurt someone they like.”

“Well, you sure as hell look better now.” Mikal responded, trying to make his lethargic body move. He felt fine, maybe a little light headed but that was to be expected when missing blood. He didn’t hurt; his muscles didn’t ache like others had reported after being fed from. He just felt… lazy, like he needed to go and sleep for a while. “You haven’t… thrown up.”

“I guess not.” Alexander stood then, helping Mikal to his feet and walking down the hall with him, leading him into a rarely used sitting room. “I guess we’re going to have that talk now, aren’t we?”

“Yeah, talk.” Mikal murmured, swallowing thickly as he fell onto an overly cushioned loveseat. He just hoped he could stay awake during it. At least one thing had been proven during their little chat in the hallway… he wasn’t the only that harbored less that innocent feelings in this relationship.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nearly two years had passed since the first time Mikal felt his neck pierced by fangs. Since then, it had become almost an addiction to him… to both of them. Their boss understood that, often sending them on hunts together so neither partner would have to suffer without their fix. It had actually been a shock when Alexander had joined the organization. Mikal had been absolutely floored when the first point he’d brought to attention was his unique heritage. But, at least, he’d been accepted. He was watched very closely but no one had ever threatened to harm him.

Nothing had been the same since that fated day in the dark hallway. Their conversation after the feeding had included so many different subjects. He’d learned the truth behind vampires and Alexander’s family and he’d explained the changes the hunters had implemented after discovering vampires weren’t all feral creatures like they thought. But the most important had been when they’d grudgingly spoken about their feelings for each other and then… what had happened after that.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_“I don’t care that you’re a man.” Mikal stated, finally able to focus clearly. This was something he wasn’t going to bend on. Alexander had to know how he felt. He wasn’t going to leave until the raven knew he was loved, whether he cared or not. “I love you like I should love a woman. These five years… I’ve fought so hard because I love you. I may not have known what it was at the start but it’s the truth. You don’t have to love me, I’ll leave if you tell me too… but you deserve to know.”_

_Alexander’s wide eyes were his only sign of shock, a soft sound escaping him as he shifted across from the other man. “You could be lynched for loving me. Lets not even approach the fact of my gender, I’m a vampire. What will the organization think?”_

_“I don’t give a fuck what they would think.” Mikal responded, his eyes focused on Alexander, never wavering. “If they throw me out for it, I’ll find a new job. If they attack us for it, I’ll protect you. I’m not scared to love you. It’s your choice if you decide to reciprocate or not. I will not push the issue after this night.”_

_“You saved my life.” Alexander said, touching the pulse point on his neck, the blood flowing through his veins Mikal’s “You sheltered me when life at this house became unbearable.” He looked down then, swallowing nervously. “I have loved you longer than you have loved me.”_

_Mikal felt his heart jerk in his chest from the words, a soft sound escaping him as he reached up to touch the suddenly aching spot. Alexander loved him… he really loved him. He jumped when the raven was suddenly in front of him, touching his forehead and asking if he was ok, if he’d taken too much. He just smiled and leaned forward, sealing their lips together in their first kiss of many._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Earth to Mikal, are you in there?”

Mikal jumped when Alexander waved his hand in front of his face, clearing his throat and nodding. “Ahhh, yeah.” He murmured, blushing as he looked down, continuing their slow walk across the grassy plain. It had been a while since he had thought about that day. It had been such an emotional wreck for him. It had started so sad and ended so happy that he just hadn’t known how to react by the time it was over. “I’m fine.”

“You had a girly, dreamy look on your face.” Alexander teased, grinning at him. “What were you thinking about?”

“The first time we kissed.” Mikal answered truthfully, smiling as he looked up at the older man. “You were so cute when you blushed. “Ahh! You blushed with my blood!”

Alexander huffed at him, crossing his arms over his chest. “I did not blush.” He turned to walk away then, his eyes going wide when Mikal’s hand grabbed him rather inappropriately in the groin. He looked over at the man then, his eyes wide. “What are you doing?”

“I’m trying to make you blush.” Mikal cocked his head, reaching up to press his hand against the raven’s forehead. “But you didn’t, do you need to feed? You don’t have enough blood to blush, do you?” Alexander was absolutely horrible about telling him when he needed to feed. They’d been gone a hunt for nearly three weeks and he’d only touched him once, it made sense his supply was low.

“I can wait until we’re back at base.” Alexander replied, clearing his throat and shifting a bit uncomfortably before starting to walk again, his gait a little off because of the ‘problem’ he now had from his lover grabbing his groin.

Mikal looked around, able to see seemingly for miles on the grassy plain, there was absolutely no one there. “There’s no reason we can’t stop here.” He said, smiling innocently as he pushed his hands into his pockets and looked down at the front of Alexander’s pants. “Kill two birds with one stone.” He wasn’t surprised to be tackled to the ground after his very obvious offer, his laughter bleeding to a low moan when the other man’s fangs delved into his neck just as strong hips rocked down against his own.

Feeding had quickly become something sexual to them, something that brought them closer together and satisfied their needs all at the same time. Mikal groaned again, trying to focus on the task at hand. There was barely room between them for his hands, his body shaking as he deftly pulled the clasps of their pants, allowing hot flesh to touch with no barriers. He was lost to the sensations after that, his hands clinging desperately to Alexander’s shoulders as the man fed from him, thrusting down against him, their erections grinding against each other almost painfully.

It was absolute heaven.

Mikal groaned, his body arching up as he strained his neck, desperate for the feeling of being fed from. Alexander had ruined him for other men. He wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to see sex the same without sharp fangs and biting involved. Being fed from hadn’t gotten any less intense for him in the years he’d been with the vampire, every pull on his blood almost as good as the other man’s mouth sucking his cock. He would never say they were the same again, he’d learned very early in their relationship that the raven was very, very talented with his mouth.

He almost whimpered when Alexander’s fangs disappeared from his neck, his length still aching, leaking as he pressed up against the other male. Fuck, it felt good but without the bite… He couldn’t even complete his thought before the black haired male tilted his head to the side and suddenly bit down hard on the other side of his neck, tearing a scream from his throat as his orgasm hit him hard and fast, spreading slick liquid between them, the continued movements of his lovers length against his own almost painful now.

Alexander didn’t normally bite him twice. He could count the amount of times he’d done so on one had. The first time he’d taken too much, leaving Mikal passed out but very, very pleased. The only times the very pleasurable occurrence had happened after that had been when the other man lost control and, fuck, he loved those moments. He let out a low groan when the vampire’s hips jerked against his own, coming to a stop before he felt more warmth spread against his stomach.

He knew to some people their relationship was forbidden, disgusting and perverse, but he didn’t care. Their love, these feelings, they were as true as they were between any man and woman, between any two humans. They were happy, they loved each other. Mikal couldn’t think of anything that could make this better, or anything that could ruin it.

Of course, life was always filled with surprises… and happiness rarely lasted.


	4. The Werewolf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alexander's and Mikal's lives go well for years until they're sent on a hunt to dispose of a feral werewolf... and everything goes wrong.

“Hah! A silver bullet does take a werewolf down!” Mikal looked triumphant as he held up the gun, grinning at Alexander. “See, some of those old myths do work!”

“I don’t think it really would have mattered what the bullet was made from.” Alexander murmured, investigating the now diseased werewolf before pulling back again. In the two years he’d been in the organization, a lot of things had changed. Vampires and werewolves and shape shifters weren’t hunted simply because of their species anymore. But, that didn’t mean they were completely excluded from their jobs. This werewolf had been feral; he’d killed at least four people before they finally found him. He almost laughed at the look on the other man’s face, smiling as he reached over and ruffled Mikal’s face. “No, no, you’re right. It was absolutely because it was a silver bullet.”

He picked up his bag then, settling it on his back before looked back at Mikal. “We need to get back and tell the clean up crew where to find him.” Alexander hummed, grabbing his friend’s hat and pushing it onto his head, chuckling at the annoyed look he received before the other man fixed it. “Come on, if we take too much time, someone else might find him and you know how the boss feels about civilians seeing our work.”

“Ugh, god, I can’t go through another one of his five hour lectures.” Mikal wrinkled his nose, his eyebrows drawing down in disgust. “And it wasn’t even my fault! Michael was the one who ignored protocol, bastard.”

Alexander agreed completely with that statement. If there was a single one of their coworkers that was more of a bastard than Michael, he definitely hadn’t found them. They were all looking for a way to get him fired. But, apparently, being the bosses bitch in bed was enough to get him preferential treatment even though he fucked up on nearly every hunt. “Whatever, at least you don’t get paired up with him anymore. If he was here, taking down that werewolf would have been ten times as hard. I swear, he likes getting hurt.”

“Heh, and that’s why the boss likes him so much.” Mikal replied with a saucy wink, hefting his own pack as they walked down the gravel road, heavy boots crunching on the stone ground just visible under the light of the full moon. “One day, though, he’ll get tired of him, just like he’s gotten tired of every hunter he’s taken a fancy in, and Michael will FINALLY be gone!”

“Hallelujah.” Alexander responded, pumping his fist up into the air. He was distracted enough, they were both distracted enough, that they didn’t hear the heavy foot steps behind them until they were right on top of them. He jerked around just as Mikal did, a startled shout escaping him when his partner was suddenly tackled under four hundred pounds of now very alive werewolf. “Fuck! No!” His instincts took over, making him drop his pack and jump the animal, struggling to get it off of Mikal before it could cause any damage.

The vampire managed to pry one of the animal’s paws away from Mikal but his victory was short lived. He was thrown back, impacting the very solid trunk of a tree when the beast jerked its arm. His disorientation didn’t last long and he was running forward seconds later, his hand closing around the gun in his bag and lifting it. He didn’t hesitate emptying his barrel into the werewolves head, five, expensive, silver bullets embedding in it’s skull before it finally fell. “Thank fucking god.” He let out a sigh of relief but even that was stolen from him when he looked down, the sight that met his eyes making his stomach turn.

There was blood, so much blood.

Mikal’s chest had been ripped open, his skin torn by vicious, long claws. Through all the red, Alexander could see straight down to bone. The look in his friend’s eyes perfectly displayed terror, his breathing ragged as his skin lost all color, the red of his blood against his cheek a stark comparison to the paper white flesh. The raven fell down beside him, his hands shaking as he pressed them against his chest, trying to stanch the flow of blood as his terrified mind attempted to remember what he was supposed to do in a situation like this.

“Mikal, fuck, Mikal, stay with me!” Alexander did the only thing he could think to do. He raised his wrist, biting into the vein that beat strongly there with sharp fangs. As his blood spilled over the wounds on Mikal’s chest, he prayed. He’d done it before, healed small wounds but this… this was so bad. Would it really be enough?

“You’re wasting your blood, little vampire.”

Alexander jerked around, his eyes searching out the source of the voice. He made a soft sound when he found a beautiful woman looking at him. She was the picture of a noble. Her short, blue hair shone in the moonlight, the navy blue, off the shoulder ballroom gown perfectly matched with high, fingerless gloves she wore contrasting against pale skin. But her eyes, her eyes were red, like his were when he was nearly feral from not feeding. His hands clenched when he finally figured it out, still futily pressing against the wounds on Mikal’s chest. “Vile witch.”

“Ahhh, how rude! Someone in your position should call me by my name.” Her smile was sinister was she stepped forward, her feet actually floating almost six inches off the ground. “Majo.”

“A witch named witch, how inventive. It seems I did call you by name.” Alexander responded dryly, a growl bubbling out of his throat when the woman simply moved closer. They would have never been sent if they had known there would be a witch, they had specialized teams for magic users. “You’re behind this, aren’t you?”

“Ahhh, you mean my lovely pet, don’t you?” Majo replied, the werewolf with six bullets now in its body standing with a snap of her fingers, unfocused eyes staring straight forward. “I’ll say, you did a number on his poor brain. It’s going to take me so very long to repair that.” She suddenly disappeared then, reappearing right behind Alexander, a delicate hand twined tight in his long, black hair. “Maybe I’ll just give him yours!”

Alexander’s hand moved quickly, pulling a switchblade from his pocket. He didn’t think twice about cutting off the hair the witch was holding, his other hand grabbing Mikal. He knew he couldn’t stick around. Even if he was capable of killing the witch, his partner would die while he waited. He moved in a flash, the other man’s body cradled in his arms as he used every bit of supernatural speed he had to get away from the woman before she made true on her promise and cut his brain out.

He ran as fast and as far as he could, almost falling to his knees as he stumbled up the steps to his family’s estate. A lot had changed there in the three years since Mikal had found him and taken him away. The only one that still resided in the large home was his brother, Benedict and, if there was anyone knowledgeable about saving the lives of humans, it was him. He could barely breathe as he slammed into the house, falling to his knees just inside the door. “Ben! Fuck, I need you!” He was pushing it, drawing more blood to cover the wounds, but it wasn’t quite to killing him yet. When the flow stopped, his raised his arm again, whimpering when he was stopped right before he could bite into his flesh again.

“Your blood cannot help him now.”

Alexander could feel his heart breaking, shattering into millions of painful, cutting shards at those words. Tears that he’d held back for so many years suddenly started falling down his cheeks. “I have to save him! There has to be something I can do!” He pressed his blood covered hands against Mikal’s chest as he spoke, near hyperventilating as he tried his hardest to stop the constant flow of life giving liquid from the man’s chest. His senses were heightened, taking in the slowing beat of his heart and nearly incomprehensible breathing. The love of his life was dying right in front him! He couldn’t let that happen!” “Please Ben… help me.” He sounded like a child when he said it; tear filled eyes lifting to lock with his older brothers.

Benedict fought with his decision to speak before nodding and closing his eyes. “There’s only one way… but there’s a possibility it will fail with how gravely injured he is.”

“I’ll do anything!” Alexander grabbed the front of Benedict’s shirt then, blood smearing over pristine white as his desperate eyes searched his brother’s face. “Just tell me what it is!”

“Turn him.”

Alexander’s hand fell, his entire body seeming to sag at the two, seemingly innocent, words. But to a vampire, they meant the world. He could turn Mikal… attempt to turn him and it might just save his life but he would never be the same again. Mikal would be a vampire, he would be the very creature that he’d hunted with a religious convictions for years of his life. Would he ever be able to accept that? Would he hate him for it?

Alexander already knew his answer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“It makes sense, doesn’t it?” Mikal asked, watching Alexander with wide eyes. “We’ve had almost three years to decide if we wanted to be together and, apparently, we do. In those three years, you’ve stayed the same but me, me, I’ve aged! Alex, I found a gray hair! I’m going to go prematurely gray!”

“It’s just stress; you always get stressed during this time of the year.” Alexander answered, sitting in front of the other man with his hands clenched. Mikal had surprised him with this conversation. They’d just been innocently talking about what they were going to do for their anniversary than the other man had asked him what it was like to be a vampire.

Then he’d asked him to make him one.

“This is too a big a decision to make on the spur of the moment. I know you might think three years is long enough to wait but if you’re serious about this, it will change you for the rest of your life. There is no magic cure or pill you can take to be human again. You will be a vampire until you’re killed, commit suicide or go into your eternal sleep. You have to take more time to think about this.” Alexander elaborated, swallowing thickly as he looked up at Mikal. “And, even if you decide you want me to turn you, there’s a likelihood that it will fail and I will kill you. I can’t take that chance, I love you too much.”

“So you’d rather watch me grow old and die instead?” Mikal asked, striding forward and settling himself on Alexander’s lap, his hands framing the other man’s face as he kissed him slowly. “I love you, I know I’m going to love you until the day I die… no matter how long that is. I want to be with you forever… how long do I have to wait?”

Alexander wrapped his arms around the other man, shaking as he held Mikal close, his head tucked into the curve of his neck. It hurt to tell his lover no. He wanted to have him forever as his mate but he knew three years just wasn’t long enough. There wasn’t a finite amount of time so he pulled a number off the top of his head, what he thought was long enough to make a decision as immense as this. “Five years.” He said, swallowing as he looked up at the man. “If, in two years, you still wish to be turned and stay with me, I will do it without argument.”

Mikal grinned them, licking his lips as he watched Alexander. “I’m looking forward to it.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alexander knew there was no way he could wait two years now, the conversation that had taken place less than a month prior giving him hope that Mikal wouldn’t hate him for doing this. His hands held the other man tight as he leaned down, razor sharp veins sinking into the barely beating vein in his neck. Tears continued to fall as he stole what was left of Mikal’s life, barely stopping himself from sobbing when everything stopped and his friend died before him. “Please work, please work.”

Contrary to popular belief, a vampire bite laced with the intent to turn didn’t guarantee the turn would be successful. There was about a fifty/fifty success rate and that was with healthy bodies. Mikal’s highly damaged one would make the possibility of success even lower. Alexander held his breath as he used what little blood he had left, puncturing the abused vein that beat in his wrist, the dark, red fluid dropping into the other man’s mouth. He almost lost it when nearly a minute passed with no response, an agonized scream ripping out of his body as he fell over Mikal, holding him tight. “Work! It has to work! God, if you exist, please!”

Benedict watched in stony silence, knowing it could take up to five minutes for the turn to set but, as time slipped by, it became more and more obvious that this had been a failure and his brother was breaking. He sent up his own silent prayer, discreetly cutting into his own skin, his blood mixing with his brothers on Mikal’s tongue. His own was stronger and he prayed it was what was needed to make this successful.

The hall clocked ticked loudly, marking each, silent second with a loud clack. Alexander’s tears came faster as two minutes passed, then three and four. When another sixty seconds ticked by, the normal time limit, he started sobbing, his hands trembling as he touched Mikal’s cheeks, leaning down to press a wet, emotion filled kiss to his lovers cold lips. He could barely breathe, resting his forehead against the other man’s, hot tears falling onto deathly pale cheeks. “I’m so sorry… I love you so much… god, I love you Mikal… the only one I’ll ever love… if I had just done it then…” He might be alive now.

It was his own hesitance that lost him the love of his life.

When ten minutes had passed, Benedict reached forward, sliding a hand into his younger brothers’ hair. Alexander’s tears had never ceased, his body lying over his dead lovers, as if the small amount of heat he had could bring him back. “I’m sorry, little brother.” He whispered, having to staunch his own emotions when the younger man looked up at him, his face contorted into a look of absolute, soul shattering loss. “I’m so sorry but… it will not do for you to follow him. You bled too much, you need to-”

“Just leave me alone!” Alexander yelled, his hands clenching desperately in Mikal’s shirt. “You have no idea… I don’t fucking care if I follow him!” He sat up as he spoke, his blood stained hand clenching his shirt over his heart. “I’m already dead in here.” After everything they’d gone through, it just wasn’t right that it had ended like this. He’d kill that fucking witch for taking what was his. He couldn’t lose Mikal like this.

Apparently he wasn’t the only one that thought that way.

Against all logic, all the rules of turning, there was suddenly movement from the body below him. Mikal’s eyes shot open, a pained cry escaping him as he arched up, drawing in air that his body desperately needed as gleaming fangs tore through his gums. It was nearly fifteen minutes after his death, three times longer than any vampire had reported a fledgling waking up.

Alexander was shocked stupid for a few moments, only remembering what he was supposed to do when Benedict pulled Mikal’s body up. He snatched the man from his brother, pulling his mouth to his neck. “Let instinct be your guide.” He winced when he was bitten, the bite of an inexperienced vampire always painful, sometimes excruciating. He made a soft sound when he saw the worried look on his brothers face, not understand the near panic held there until his body clenched violently, seizing from blood loss. His eyes rolled back in his head as he fell, never even noticing when Benedict took Mikal from him and the new vampire latched onto his neck instead, a figure clad in all black disappearing from the corner of his eye.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alexander didn’t wake for three days, his eyes slow to open once he finally came back to his senses. He wrinkled his nose at the strange, pinching feeling he could feel in the crook of his elbow, a soft sound escaping him when he looked down and saw a needle inserted in his vein, leading up to an iv bag of blood hanging from the headboard. “What…”

“Good, you’re finally awake.” Benedict said as he walked into the room, a replacement bag in his hand. “Would you like this or would you like to feed from me?”

“Feed or…” Alexander swallowed as he tried to sit up, making a soft sound when his hand impacted a warm body, pulling a soft grunt from the man lying in the bed with him. He moved quickly, almost pulling the iv straight out of his arm as he turned, wide eyes taking in the sight of Mikal laying there, laying there breathing… alive! “Mikal!”

Mikal groaned when he was woken up, tired eyes looking up into Alexander’s blue ones. “Ahhh, you finally woke up. You worried us.”

“I worried you?!” Alexander held his arm still long enough for his brother to take the iv out before yanking up Mikal’s shirt, a soft sound escaping him when he saw the healing scars on the chest. His fingers were shaking as he touched them, tears welling up in his eyes again. “You’re ok? You… you were gone…”

“Yeah, Ben said it was almost fifteen minutes, I’m sorry for worrying you so much.” Mikal murmured, reaching up and touching his cheek. “I was busy visiting with family, I promise, I won’t do it again.”

“You better not.” Alexander said, his voice more of a whimper as he leaned down, pressing desperate kissing to Mikal’s lips. The entire time he’d slept, images of Mikal cold, pale and dead under him had rotated through his mind as if on a glitching film strip. “God, I love you.”

“I love you too.” Mikal murmured, nuzzling him softly. “Now, feed from your brother like a good boy so I can be a proper fledgling and actually feed from the vampire that made me, hmm?”

Alexander just nodded, shaking as he looked up at his brother. “Ok… ok.” He murmured, leaning down to give the other man another, loving kiss before pulling back and moving to feed from Benedict. Mikal was his fledgling to take care of and he was determined to do a good job. He wanted to have him around for a good, long time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“As long as you eat something solid at least once a day, you won’t become the type of vampire that can’t eat real food.” Alexander said as he carried the tray in, a bowl of soup specially made for vampires from a blood base sitting on top of it. It had been just over a month, thirty three days, four hours and ten minutes to be exact, since Mikal had been turned and the man was doing well. “It will be red meat for now but soon enough, you’ll be able to eat whatever you want. Some sires swear by the five year rule but I think that just makes it harder for their fledgling to acclimate to food again, some never do.”

“Yes, mother.” Mikal teased, humming as he leaned down to smell the soup. “Wow, it smells amazing.”

“Blood is always going to smell good to you now.” Alexander replied, sitting down beside Mikal after settling the tray down over his lap. He lifted one of glasses from the surface, deep red wine thick in the delicate glass. Blood wine still hadn’t been perfected but the liquor infused with a feeder’s blood was still a precious commodity among their kind. “Ben said we can probably move out soon if you want too… if you mind staying here.”

“I don’t mind.” Mikal murmured, smiling as he looked up at Alexander, chewing the bit of meat in his mouth before swallowing. It was nice to eat something solid. “If it bothers you, though. We can go. I know how you used to feel about living here.”

“I don’t mind, I’m happy as long as you’re with me.” Alexander responded easily, not even fazed by how sappy the statement was. He’d been a lot worse over the course of the past month. He leaned over, stealing kisses from Mikal between sips of wine and bites of food. “It is safer here than it would be at either of our homes. I don’t mind staying until you’re acclimated to the sun again.”

Mikal just nodded, smiling as he stole his own kiss. “Then it’s a plan.” He murmured, brushing a bit of Alexander’s hair back. “I love you.”

Alexander didn’t hesitate responding, a smile curving his lips as he spoke. “I love you too.” Right then, he was really and truly happy. He was so glad things had turned out well.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just over three months after his untimely death, Mikal was forced to wakefulness by the sound of a crash, his sleep addled mind still groggy as he looked around, trying to figure out what had pulled him from slumber. He made a soft sound when he saw the bed beside him was empty, patting the still slightly warm area before slipping from the comfortable surface himself. “Alexander?” His hand lifted to open their bedroom door, a shocked sound escaping him when it suddenly flew open, Benedict standing in front of him with wide, panicked eyes.

“Are you ok?!” Benedict’s hands were shaking as he looked Mikal over before moving further into the room, a soft sound escaping him as he looked around. “God, tell me Alex is with you!”

“He… he’s not…” Mikal whimpered a little, not liking where this conversation was going. He’d only seen Benedict look so very panicked one time before and that was right after he’d been turned and he couldn’t get Alexander to wake up. “Is something wrong? What was that sound?”

“The back door.” Benedict said, his hands clenching hard enough that his nails drew blood from his palms. He closed his eyes, trying to control his own breathing, searching the house with his senses. “Alexander’s gone.”

“What do you mean?” Mikal couldn’t stop the panicked question, his hands clenching the older man’s shirt. “He can’t be gone! The bed’s still warm!”

“It looks like there was a struggle… the back door is destroyed, it’s looks like it was blown apart.” Benedict’s voice shook a little as he spoke, his eyes dark and worried as he looked down at Mikal. “There’s blood… Alex’s blood.”

Mikal felt his stomach drop then, his heart stuttering in his chest as he reached out too hold onto Benedict. “Blood?” He whispered, his eyes wide as he looked towards the door. He took off suddenly then, his eyes wide when the other man grabbed him just as his hand closed around the hallway door’s handle, lifting him straight off his feed. “What are you doing?! I have to see! I have to find him!”

“You can’t go out there, you’ll be burned alive!” Benedict’s voice was just as panicked as Mikal’s as he held the man up, above the sunlight that had creeped under the door and already scorched the new vampire’s feet. “You’ll be killed!”

“How long am I stuck in here, then?! How long until I can go look for him?!” Mikal struggled in his arms, tears coming to his eyes as he tried to get out of Benedict’s arms. He couldn’t let this happen again! He’d already lost Alexander once, he couldn’t lose him again. “How long am I trapped?!” He asked desperately, shaking as he looked into the elder man’s eyes.

“Five years, you can’t into the sun for five years.” Benedict responded, sounding defeated as he carried Mikal back to the safety of his and Alexander’s room, sitting him on their shared bed. “I’m sorry, you can’t search for him until then, it’s too dangerous for a vampire as young as you.”

“I can’t wait that long!” Alexander could be hurt, five years was too damned long to wait to find him! Mikal’s eyes watered as he took in the injustice of it all. He didn’t care how tired he was, how weak he still was, he was going to find his lover and it wasn’t going to take him years like it had last time. He was going to have Alexander back in his bed by the time the week closed or he’d be damned!

Little did he know that it would be nearly two hundred years before he saw his friend again… and, even then, it wouldn’t be in the way he expected.


	5. Two Hundred Years

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two hundred years pass with Mikal and Benedict believing Alexander dead only for Benedict to be shocked by his younger brother showing up at his club, the same brother he'd buried two centuries earlier. But all is not well, Alexander cannot keep blood down. Will his freedom come with the price of his life?

_His breathing was loud in his ears, every little sound around him sending a surge of adrenaline through his body. Alexander had been here so long, so very long. The machines in the small, enclosed room monitored the beat of his heart, his breathing; fed tainted, painful blood into his veins… they controlled his life. It was hard to remember a time he hadn’t been like this, the dreams of the days he’d been happy simply making this torture seem even more unbearable. He’d made the mistake of pissing her off… and he’d been paying for it for nearly two centuries._

_He now understood what being a lab rat felt like._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alexander shook away the memory, shaking under the piercing rays of the setting sun. He could feel his skin burning even through the heavy cloak he wore, the tainted blood he’d been fed for so long having removed the natural defenses he’d had since he was a child. So many years had come and gone since the last time he’d seen the light of day, the burning was worth being able to walk free. His instinct was leading him, his hypersensitive sense of smell having locked onto his brother the moment he walked into the town.

The last, fading lights of day disappeared as he walked down a dirty, cold alley, Benedict’s scent strong in his nose. He could tell he was close but his body was rebelling, telling him it was time to rest, no matter how close he was. He stumbled over a bottle on the ground, crying out when he fell against the rough, brick wall. His hand clenched over his stomach, trying to squelch the urge to throw up… again. He hadn’t been able to feed since he’d run, any blood he ingested refused to absorb into his body. It was strangely reminiscent of a time so long ago… but he doubted that man would be coming to his rescue again.

“Hey man, are you ok? Did you have too much to drink or something? They don’t like people passing out in alleys around here.”

Alexander tried not to flinch away from the comforting hand on his shoulder. He knew the man was just trying to help but it had been a long time since being touched had been a good thing. He just swallowed, taking in a steeling breath before standing up straight again and looking at the man, forcing a smile onto his face. “I’m fine, thank you. I just wasn’t watching where I was going and I tripped.”

“Ahh, ok. Awesome contacts, dude.”

“Thanks…” Alexander blinked as the man walked away, his hand trailing along the wall as he shakily walked to a window, looking into the reflecting surface. “Ohh.” His eyes had bled to red again, even the iris a deep magenta instead of black. Of course someone would think they were contacts. Vampires were legends in this day and age, either that or goth wannabees who liked to pretend they could suck blood. If there was one thing the woman had liked to do, it was torture him with how much the world was changing while he was trapped, staying the same.

The line leading into the club was prohibitively long. Alexander knew he wouldn’t be able to wait through it so he walked right to the front, using the bit of energy he had left to charm the lanky bouncer into letting him in. He stepped inside amidst the boos of the other waiting patrons, wincing as he tried to acclimate to the atmosphere of the club. Everything was so bright and loud, there were people everywhere dancing and grinding together. He’d been told about this particular activity but he’d never actually seen it in practice.

He didn’t like it.

Alexander stuck to the outskirts, walking along the wall as he made his way towards the bar and ever closer to his brother's scent. He already knew this was Benedict’s club, that his brother had latched onto his lifestyle and made quite a living at it. It definitely wouldn’t have been what he expected; Benedict had always been such a private, withdrawn person. For him to do something like this was inconceivable to him. He hadn’t believed it when he’d first been told. But, here he was, the smell of his family so close that he was certain he was here.

“What can I get for ya?”

The bartender looked nice enough. If Alexander hadn’t seen everything at some point in his long life, he would have thought his shining silver hair came from a bottle and his matching eyes were contacts. But nothing about him looked fake, he was clearly comfortable in his skin if the barely there top he wore was any indication. He just swallowed, reading the man’s name from the tag hanging from his neck before speaking again. “Jun, I need to see Benedict.”

“Yeah, you and a hundred other people.” Jun answered, chuckling as he expertly drew a beer, sliding it down the bar at the perfect speed. “The boss don’t see every random person that comes through here, he’s a bit busy for that. But, if ya stick around, he might come out to the floor, he does that sometimes.”

Alexander reached out, grabbing Jun’s sleeve with a shaky hand when the man tried to walk away from him. “I can’t wait!” His hood fell when he jerked forward, glowing red eyes focused completely on the bartender between him and his big brother. “Tell him it’s about his younger brother, just tell him! Alexander, tell him it’s about Alexander, if he still doesn’t want to see me, I’ll leave.”

Jun yanked his arm back, his eyes narrowing as he took a step back. “Fine, but only because of those.” He said as he pointed at his eyes, intimately acquainted with the way a vampires eyes looked when they were on the cusp of starvation. “But don’t ya dare bite anyone out here!”

Alexander just collapsed onto the bar stool after that, watching as Jun disappeared into the backroom, a man that looked exactly like him taking over tending the bar while he was away. It felt like he waited hours before the surly bartender reappeared, grabbing his arm and pulling him up.

“He’ll see ya but he’s pissed, ya better have a good explanation on why ya brought his brother up or he’s bound ta bite your head off.” Jun said as he drug the shaky man into the back, the music level dying down as soon as the door closed behind them.

Alexander struggled to keep up, stumbling more than once as he was drug down the long hallway to an ornate set of double door. He tripped over the edge of the rug when the doors were shoved open and he was pulled inside, making a soft sound as he fell to his knees on the carpet.

Jun made a soft sound then, his eyes wide. “Ahh god, sorry, I didn’t mean-”

“Is that him?” Benedict asked from further inside the room, his back turned to them as he poured a glass of wine, the thick, red liquid familiar.

Jun nodded, warring between his instinct to help Alexander up and answering his boss’ question. Benedict won over the other man, a soft sound escaping him as he nodded. “He is, he’s the one who said he needed to see you about your little brother.”

Benedict turned then, his eyes narrowed as he moved towards the man before him, Alexander’s head still bowed as he sat on his knees on the floor. “I don’t know who the fuck you are but coming in here saying you have information about my brother, it’s disgusting! My brother is dead!”

Alexander looked up as he spoke, his eyes meeting his brothers, the red orbs filling with tears. “Ben…”

Benedict’s rant suddenly cut off, his hand going slack, causing the wine glass to slip through his fingers. He was moving forward before the glass even hit the floor, glass shattering and thick, red wine staining the carpet. But he didn’t care; he fell to his knees in front of Alexander, his hands cupping his cheeks. “Alex…” He pulled the man close, trembling as he took in a deep breath of his brother’s scent. “My god… it’s really you.”

“Wait… this is your brother?” Jun asked, taking a shaky breath when Benedict looked up at him, his own eyes flashing red in a way he’d never seen before. He took a step back when a look of possessiveness covered his boss’ features as the man held his brother like a child would cling to their favorite stuffed animal, holding his hands up to show he was no threat. “What should I do, boss?”

“Get out.” Ben said, his attention focusing back on Alexander. He pulled his hair to one side, pulling his brother up. He winced when the younger man bit down with no further provocation, looking up at Jun again. “Get everyone out, shut it down.” He said as if he didn’t have a vampire attached to his neck. He just cupped the back of his younger brother’s head, holding him where he was. “Now!”

“But we just opened-”

“I don’t care! Get everyone out now and turn that damned music off!” Benedict’s eyes flashed red again, watching as the man hurried out of the room. He let out a relieved sigh when the beating bass finally died out, his hand rubbing over Alexander’s back as the man fed from him. “Ahhh, it’s ok, Alex. I have you now, you’ll be ok. I’m going to take care of you.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Benedict was nearly at the end of his rope when, three days later, Alexander still couldn’t keep any blood down when he fed. He’d done everything he could think to help. When feeding from him hadn’t worked, he’d asked one of his many workers. Then he’d moved to bagged blood, blood wine and even blood soup but, still, Alexander threw up. After thinking he was dead for two hundred years, having his younger brother come back just to die in front of him from blood loss… he couldn’t let that happen.

He nearly shattered his phone against the wall when he got voicemail again, the serene voice of his sister pissing him off to no end. “Fuck! Right now is not the time for you to be off on some fucking adventure, Is! Get your ass to my club as soon as possible!” He closed the phone, dropping it onto the desk with a frustrated sigh. He needed his sister’s help. He didn’t know who else he could call about this, everyone that would have known how to fix this problem had died years ago. He nearly fell out of his chair when his phone rang in his hand, his eyes going wide at the name flashing across his scene.

Mikal.

God, how had he forgotten to call Mikal, of all people? If there was anyone more crushed by his brother’s disappearance than him, it was Mikal. Benedict took in a deep breath before answering the phone, his hand gripping the plastic hard enough for it to crack. “I know what you called about is probably important but I need you to come to the club right now and, please, be fully fed.”

Mikal chuckled on the other end, clearly already driving. “I was just calling to wish you a happy birthday, grumpy puss.” He said before humming softly, sounding a bit confused. “Do you need to feed? I can bring one of the feeders.”

“It’s not me, I need your blood.” Last time Alexander had been sick, the only blood he’d kept down had been Mikal’s. He knew it had been a long time and this sickness was different but he could pray, right? Benedict took in a deep breath, swallowing before speaking again. “Just get here as soon as possible, please.”

“My blood?” Mikal just shook his head, hitting his turn signal. “I just have to pick up your present then I’ll be there.”

“You’re a present enough.” Benedict responded, looking towards the bedroom when he heard movement. He stood, his eyes wide when he saw Alexander moving on the bed. “Just hurry, while he’s still awake.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mikal made a soft sound then, opening his mouth to speak but the dial tone was already sounding in his ear. “Who’s him?” He shook his head, sighing as he made a wide U-turn, heading back towards the club. He was surprised to see it empty when he got there, cocking his head. It was a summer Friday night, the place should be packed. His brown eyes surveyed the spotlessly clean club before he made his way towards the back, calling out Benedict’s name. “Hey! Where are you?!”

He stopped as soon as he opened the door to the backroom, scents and emotions hitting him like a freight train. His heart clenched at the familiar scent, Alexander’s scent. It made him weak kneed, his body shaking as he leaned against the door frame. He knew it couldn’t be him, Benedict had just probably found another box of his things that he wanted to share with him but… it was so damned _strong_. It made him feel like he could walk into the room and actually see his lost lover there.

“Don’t you lose it on me too, he needs you.”

Mikal made a soft sound when he was drawn away from the door frame, trembling as every step took him closer to the overwhelming scent. He tried to stop but Benedict made him move forward, his eyes wide as he looked up at the man. “What are you doing to me?! Who is he?!” He jerked to a stop when the other man did, his eyes going wide as he followed Benedict’s pointing finger to the bed.

He couldn’t believe what he saw.

“It can’t be…” Mikal shook with the power of his emotions, his body giving out on him when he got to the bed. He reached out to touch Alexander, shaking fingers trailing over cold cheeks. He could smell him, he could see him breathing but he still couldn’t believe he was there and alive. He’d lived for nearly two hundred years believing the man was dead… they’d buried him, for god’s sake! How was it possible that he was here?! He looked up at Benedict for his answer, wide, questioning eyes full of tears.

“I don’t know.” Benedict swallowed, looking down at the bed. “But it’s him, there’s no doubt… and he’s starving to death. He can’t feed, he can’t stay awake, I’ve tried everything but…”

“But me.” Mikal nodded then, moving slowly to straddle Alexander’s lap, reaching down to shake the man awake. “Just go, I’ll make sure he feeds, I won’t lose him again.”

Benedict nodded, leaning down to kiss Alexander’s forehead before pulling back again, walking out of the room and closing the door to leave them alone.

Mikal could feel his heart very nearly beating out of his chest as he looked down at Alexander, the black haired male looking so very serene as he slept under him. He still could barely believe it was him… that he was there and wasn’t going to disappear again. He’d be damned if he lost him again! But now, now he just had to get the man to wake up. When shaking and yelling didn’t work, he leaned down and kissed him firmly, pressing his body down against Alexander’s in a very intimate way.

That did the trick.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alexander made a soft sound as he woke up, his body shaking as he tried to focus on the person on top of him. Black hair… Ben? But… why would Ben kiss him? No, those were brown eyes. Brown eyes, black hair… couldn’t be his sister… Marc had red hair and was probably dead. But then who… none of his brother’s workers looked like this. Ahhh, why couldn’t he figure it out, he knew someone with black hair and brown eyes, he knew them well.

“Good, you’re finally awake, now get your lazy self up here and feed. You’re worrying everyone again.”

Wait… could that be… Alexander forced his eyes up again, a soft sound escaping him when he finally focused on the man sitting on top of him. It couldn’t be… “Mikal?”

“Yeah, who else is going to kiss you to wake you up like you’re some sad version of sleeping beauty, huh?” Mikal tried to smile at his own joke but his features were still drawn down in worry, his hands on the other man’s cheeks. “Now, do what I say and feed before you waste away to nothing.”

“I can’t…” Alexander answered, shaking as he pressed into the soft touches. God, he’d missed Mikal so bad. Even if this was a dream, he was going to revel in it. He hadn’t seen the man he loved in so very long. He just reached up, attempting to pull his lover back down into another kiss. “I love you.”

“Alex, focus.” Mikal didn’t let the kiss continue for long, no matter how much he craved it. He pushed Alexander back from his lips, shaking as he looked down at him. “You need to feed, right now, before you go back to sleep. Do you understand me? You need to feed until you can’t stomach anymore.”

“I can’t.” Alexander said again, having trouble focusing on Mikal, his eyes blurring almost constantly. “It would be… a waste… I can’t keep it down.”

“You’ve never thrown up my blood before and you won’t now.” Mikal cupped the back of Alexander’s head, pulling him up towards his neck. “Just feed, if you get sick, we’ll get through it. If not, I’ll give you very, very nice present. Ok?”

“You promise?” Alexander asked, shaking as he held onto Mikal. The temptation of neck so close, the blood he knew tasted so damned good… god, he wanted it. Even if he couldn’t keep it down, the taste would be enough to appease him.

“I promise.” Mikal whispered, letting out a sigh of relief when Alexander finally bit down, holding the sick man against his body. Hopefully, this would be the start of his recovery and their long, happy life together.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Mikal, it’s been two weeks; I think I can get my own food by now.”

“Nope, we still don’t know if moving around will make you throw up.” Mikal answered, settling a tray across Alexander’s lap with a small smile, stealing a kiss before sitting beside him. They’d been in this position before, only they had been switched. He was just as determined to take care of Alexander now as the man had been to take care of him back then. “You heard what Isabella said; you were hours from starving to death. We have to be careful about you still.”

Alexander sighed, taking in a deep breath as he lifted the glass of blood wine from the tray. “But I am better; I was even able to keep Ben’s blood down. It’s probably just the taint being expelled from my body after so long of it being there.”

“You keep saying things like that… are you ever going to tell me what they mean?” Mikal asked, cocking his head as he reached out to touch Alexander’s cheek. The question of where his lover had been for two hundred years burned in the back of his mind. He’d wanted to give the raven time to open up on his own but, even two weeks later; he was surprisingly tight lipped, only the accidentally spoken phrases giving him any clue. “You can talk to me about it… you know.”

“I know.” Alexander murmured, taking in a deep breath as he bit his lip. He took a drink of his wine, letting the liquor burn down his throat before speaking again, his eyes lowered as his fingers clenched around the wine glass. “I’ll tell you… it was the witch… the witch that killed you…”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_“I don’t know who you are but I swear to god, I’m going to rip out your throat!” Alexander struggled against the surprisingly strong ropes holding him to what felt like, well, one of the experimental chairs attached to electricity the engineers at the organization were working on, a blindfold leaving him blind and relying on his other senses. He arched up as far as he could go, screaming when his suspicions were confirmed and high voltages of electricity danced through his body, burning into muscles and tendons. He jerked as he fell back, agony making his entire body pulse once the torture stopped. That… would have been enough to kill a human. Any higher and it might just short circuit him too._

_“Ahhh, you still breathe, what a disappointment.”_

_Alexander almost whimpered when he recognized the voice, the sudden loss of the blindfold making him jerk, the dull light in the room cutting into his corneas. He closed his eyes tight, slowly opening them once he could handle it. “You witch! What the hell do you want with me?!”_

_“I told you, your brain.” Majo answered, a long, serrated knife in her hands as she moved forward. “You absolutely destroyed my precious pet.’ She held the knife out, the sharp edge cutting into Alexander’s cheek as she drew it down his face. “You really thought I wouldn’t find you? No one messes with a witch and lives to tell the tale.”_

_Alexander closed his eyes when she raised the knife, the sensation of sharp metal against his forehead making him whimper and pull harder on his bonds. He needed to get away but there was nothing he could do, he couldn’t budge an inch. If she wanted to cut into his head, there wasn’t going to be a damned thing he could do about it. The shock of the chair being turned on again ripped another scream from him, his body convulsing as the death machine did it’s best to kill him. He felt consciousness leaving him just as the chair turned off, a sharp slap that knocked his head to the side bringing him back to reality._

_“It’s too bad my pet died before I could bring you back.” The witches’ voice held the heavy sound of hatred, the knife falling to the floor as she walked around him, the remote for the chair held in one, delicate hand. “I’ve had weeks, weeks to think up the most gruesome, painful, long way to murder you.” She stepped beside him, pushing the button for the chair again and reveling in his scream. “Too bad the chair is not the way; it makes you scream so beautifully. But, it would kill you far too quickly.”_

_Alexander whimpered when it stopped again, his muscles jumping as he twitched and jerked in the chair, the convulsions getting worse every time the chair was turned on. He knew he shouldn’t speak, he shouldn’t give her the pleasure but he couldn’t stop himself. He was already in more pain than he could ever remember; he might as well ask his question. “What are you going to do to me?”_

_“Ohh! I’m so glad you ask!” Majo grinned as she picked up an IV, the blood inside tinged almost green. “I’m going to feed you.” She attached the bag to the top of the chair, being none too gentle as she pushed a needle into the crook of his elbow. “You see, my blood will keep you alive for a good, long time.” She started the IV, grinning when the vampire started to show signs of pain. “But I’ve put a very special charm on it. You see, it will also poison you, a little each and every day. God, I can’t wait to see your face contorted in pain.” She patted his cheek then, her eyes once again glowing red as she stared in his. “The best part, even if you get away, that taint will never leave you. It will poison you; it will poison every bit of blood you feed on. Without my blood, you will die of starvation no matter how much you feed.”_

_As the burning spread through his veins, Alexander whimpered, holding back the urge to cry as he slumped in the chair. He wasn’t so scared for himself; years ago this would have been a welcome respite for him, the perfect way to die. But now he had something precious, something he would fight for. He just prayed Mikal would live until he was able to get to him again._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mikal could barely believe what he was hearing, his body shaking as he watched Alexander. That witch… had held him for two hundred years. If that had happened the first day he was there… what else had she done to him? He wasn’t sure he wanted to know. “I’m so sorry…” He whispered, looking down at the wine glass in his hand. He thought he’d suffered… “You don’t have too…”

“That’s pretty much what she did. She experimented on me. She wanted to see how much a vampire could… lose before dying. She… she wanted to see how many times a vampire could be electrocuted… have their skin cut off…” Alexander just reached up to cover his face, his entire body shaking from the memories. “But I survived… I survived because I needed you. I had to know if you were ok. Everything she told me… she would never tell me about you. It was another way to torture me. I didn’t even know if you were alive!”

“If we had known… we found your body…” Mikal felt absolutely useless. When he’d found Alexander’s body, he’d broken, the thought that it was a fake had never crossed his mind. He moved then, getting the tray out of their way and curling up against the other man, holding him close, clinging just as tight as the raven clung to him. “I’m sorry. I would have looked, every day, until I found you, if I had known. I never stopped wanting you… loving you.”

“I only have one regret.” Alexander said, looking up at him with tear filled eyes. “I regret I didn’t get to kill the bitch.”

“She’s dead?” Mikal asked, brushing the other man’s hair back with a shaky hand. He’d feel the same regret then. He wanted to kill her; he wanted to make her suffer like she had Alexander. She’d stolen so much from both of them. “How… how did it…”

“She made another werewolf.” Alexander murmured, closing his eyes as he pressed against Mikal. “But she mixed the wrong wolf with the wrong human, it became hyperviolent. You see, the man was an elf. All those stories we've heard about them... about them being fearsome warriors... well, they're true. He was able to absorb the magic she used on him... and use it to his own gain. I watched… as he tore her apart.” He opened his eyes again, looking up at his lover. ‘Then he let me go, he undid my chains, did some strange, chant over me then he let me go. He’s still out there somewhere… but I’m not sure he’s the monster.”

“He deserves a medal.” Mikal responded, sitting back against the headboard as Alexander crawled into his lap, cradling the man in his arms. “However it came about… I’m just so fucking happy to have you back. I’m never going to lose you again.” He squeezed his arms tight around Alexander, his head hidden in the crook of his shoulder. “I love you so much.”

“God, I love you too.” Alexander whispered, his body completely at ease wrapped up in his lovers strong arms. It was in that position that he slipped into sleep, his secret finally revealed and letting him rest.

Mikal, however, couldn’t bare the thought of closing his eyes. His mate had been through so much, so much pain because of him. He knew it might be better if he left, if he stopped interfering in his life but there was now way he could do it. He loved and Alexander and the man loved him right back, for better or worse. It seemed that fate was intent on ripping them apart and he wasn’t going to allow it to happen. They were never going to be separated again. Their souls were intertwined so tightly one couldn’t be told from the other. They loved, they hurt, the laughed, they felt and their souls felt with them.

For reportedly soulless creatures, they held more humanity than many human beings and they would never forget it as they lived countless centuries desperately in love with each other.


	6. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two hundred years pass with Mikal and Benedict believing Alexander dead only for Benedict to be shocked by his younger brother showing up at his club, the same brother he'd buried two centuries earlier. But all is not well, Alexander cannot keep blood down. Will his freedom come with the price of his life?

“I’m gonna catch you!”

Meredith giggled as she ran around the coffee table, deep, purple eyes going wide when she was suddenly lifted off the ground and held high in the air. “Daddy! High, daddy!”

Alexander chuckled, pulling her in close for a tight hug. “Yes, high, you like being up high, don’t you?” He asked, smiling as he settled the three year old on his shoulders. He and Mikal had adopted her when she was only three weeks old. When they’d gone to the orphanage and saw the poor, abandoned vampire baby, he just hadn’t been able to resist. She’d been so lonely and hungry and when those eyes had looked at him, he’d been lost. They hadn’t been planning on adopting then, they’d only been mated seven years, but he’d gotten attached the second he held her in his arms. They couldn’t have children of their own and adoption had only come up in passing but, as a testament to how much he loved him, Mikal hadn’t even batted an eye when Alexander begged for the child.

It was the best decision they’d ever made.

Most mated vampire pairs spent their first century alone, no matter what gender the couple was. Life was long for them, family could wait. It was a type of tradition, a tradition Alexander and Mikal had thrown out without a second thought. If anyone wanted to get testy with them, they only had to say they would have been together over two hundred years if not for the interference of the witch. That usually shut people up pretty fast.

Alexander chuckled when Meredith wiggled on his shoulders, the movement a clear indication that her 'mother' had walked into the room. It was a constant source of amusement for him, the fact that the little girl had taken to calling Mikal mama. The blush it made spread on his mates cheeks was just so adorable. “Mama, I think she's ready to go see her uncle.” 

“Uncle! Uncle Warry!” Meredith wiggled happily, falling right off of Alexander's shoulders and into Mikal's arms, giggling as she wiggled around. “He's like a big doggy!” 

“Ahhh, I still don't know how you get away with calling Warrick a doggy.” Alexander couldn't help chuckling at the very thought. Warrick was nothing like a doggy. He was the very werewolf that had freed him from captivity a decade ago. He hadn't been back with Mikal more than three months before the man had shown up at the door to make sure he was ok. Somehow, he just hadn't left after that. It hadn't taken them long to discover that he wasn't dangerous. He was just a victim, just like Alexander had been. He was a good man, he'd only been made into a monster by the vile witch. 

“He is a doggy!” Meredith replied, bouncing in Mikal's arms. “He has fur and bbbbiiiiggggg eyes!” 

“I'm sure he does.” Alexander responded, smiling as he grabbed the little girls pink, flower covered overnight bag, hanging it from his shoulder without a shred of embarrassment. He was proud to have a daughter and carry all her girly things. Hell, he wasn't against wearing a dress or a skirt if the occasion called for it. He'd lived through a lot of different times, he didn't have the same view on the world as most people did. “I'm sure he's just as excited to have you for the night as you are to spend it with him.” 

“More.” Mikal responded, smiling as he bounced the wiggly child in his arms. “He keeps calling and asking when we're going to bring her over. Apparently, the big, bad wolf is desperate for his time with Meredith.” 

“Then we should get her there.” Alexander murmured, chuckling as he walked out to the car with his family. He waited until Mikal had their daughter strapped into the car before he grabbed his mate, kissing him slowly. “Mmm, I can't wait to celebrate our anniversary, I love you so much.” 

Mikal just smiled, brushing Alexander's hair back from his face, cupping his cheek with a happy sigh. “You're not the only one.” He answered, brushing their lips together once again before pulling away. “But let's get her to Warrick before we do something our little one doesn't need to see, hmm?” 

“Sounds like a plan.” Alexander replied, stealing a final kiss before slipping into the car with Mikal. The last ten years of his life had greatly eclipsed the horrible two centuries he'd spent without the man he loved. Now, they were so very close to celebrating ten years mated, ten years since the day they'd pledged their lives to each other for all time. 

He couldn't wait. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alexander and Mikal were forgotten as soon as they dropped their daughter off with her uncle, the way she clung to the man that was big enough to crush her if he wished making them chuckle. “Well, I believe they're happy.” Alexander murmured, reaching down for Mikal's hand, drawing him back to the car. “And we have an entire, glorious night alone.” 

“Mmm, we do.” Mikal responded, using Alexander's grip on his hand to tug the man forward, sealing their lips together. “I can't wait to ravish you.” He whispered into his ear, sharp fangs scratching over his neck as he kissed the long column, ending with a sharp nip right over his collar bone. “Just like that first night.” 

Alexander's head fell back, giving Mikal unfettered access to his neck as he groaned softly, clearly remembering the night of their mating. God, that had been so damned hot, it was a night he would never forget.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_The bed groaned under their weight as the two vampire's fell onto the mattress, their mouths connected and their hands wandering, pushing at clothing and dragging across chill skin. Alexander whimpered when his hands were pinned above his head by his soon to be mate, a shaky groan torn from his throat when Mikal bit hard on the crook of his neck just as their hips pressed together, thin pants not hiding their very aroused states. “Ohhh god, please.” He whimpered, pressing up against his lover, needing his teeth to bite just a little harder. He needed Mikal's fangs to pierce him and draw his blood, to make him his in body and soul._

_Their mating heat had hit them hard, the planets aligning just right to send them into a frenzy. They could mate without it but doing it at just the right time, at this time, made the entire experience even hotter. It wasn't only that they wanted to touch each other, that they wanted to kiss each other, no, they NEEDED to touch each other, they NEEDED to kiss each other. That need left them painfully aroused and desperate to lose themselves in each others bodies._

_It also left Alexander craving a bite so badly that not getting it physically hurt._

_“Mikal.” Alexander's voice was almost a whine now, his hands clenched above his head, still held in place by the stronger vampire as his lover kissed down his chest, sharp teeth tearing the thin shirt her wore in order to get to his skin. It was happening so suddenly. Of course, they'd talked about mating and agreed they would but neither of them had expected to be overtaken by this amount of lust. He could feel Mikal trembling above him, clearly fighting his baser instincts in order to not just flip him over and fuck him until they were both rung dry. Hell, he was having an issue not asking the man to do just that._

_He let out out a low groan when Mikal suddenly let go of his hands, ripping his shirt clean down the front, teeth suddenly digging into his neck again without drawing blood, leaving him even harder and leaking inside his pants. Alexander didn't hesitate attacking the other man's clothing just as quickly as his lover had attacked his own, sharp nails tearing holes in the offending shirt before he was throwing it to the side. One arm slid around Mikal, pulling him close as the other delved into his hair to pull him down into another desperate kiss._

_His fangs were already lengthening, aching in anticipation of buying themselves in Mikal's neck and drinking the blood that would bond them together for all of eternity. There was no breaking a vampires mating, if they left each other, if they were separated, they would both die. They both knew it and they didn't give a damn. They'd already been separated for two hundred years, neither one was willing to let that happen again._

_Mikal made the next move, kissing Alexander hard before suddenly shoving the man back, untangling their bodies in order to remove the last pieces of clothing separating fevered skin. His cock was hard and long, twitching between his legs as he pushed his pants off irritably. Alexander's pants got the same treatment his shirt had, barely more than strips of fabric by the time they were pushed to the side._

_Then it happened._

_Alexander let out a loud shout when Mikal struck, sharp fangs digging into his skin right above his nipple, the euphoric sensation of his blood being taken into his lovers body sending rockets of pleasure straight to his groin. He grasped desperately at the other man's shoulders, nails digging in, leaving bright red scratch marks in their wake as he writhed underneath the other man. His back was arched almost completely off the bed, silvery moonlight making pale skin seem to almost glow as the two men gave into passion on blood red satin sheets._

_As soon as he pulled back, Alexander yanked Mikal up by the hair, burying his fangs violently in the pulsing vein that ran the length of his neck. God, he'd wanted to wait until their bodies had been connected but he wasn't exactly able to control his movements at that moment. He pulled back, swallowing the thick, red liquid, a few drops making their way down his chin, splattering over the scarlet red bite mark on his chest._

_The tempting fluid was ignored in favor of Alexander's neck, Mikal's already stained fangs sinking just harshly into the bruised flesh from his earlier ministrations as Alexander's had his own, shared pleasure leaving both men quaking as the bites sealed their mating, sex the only activity barring them from being truly joined, body and soul. There was no time for foreplay or preparation. His fangs had barely left the other man's neck before he was yanking the elder man's legs up, sheathing himself inside Alexander's body in one, quick thrust._

_Alexander's near scream echoed through the room, his eyes bleeding to red as his body clamped around the intrusion, warring internally as to whether to push it out or pull it farther in. Even the nearly painful entrance hadn't softened his erection one bit. Being a vampire in a mating frenzy was good for that, at least. There was bound to be pain, multiple bites, and bruises, but it all melded together and felt absolutely amazing._

_His nails drew long lines of blood down Mikal's back when the man moved. There was nothing soft or loving here. This was fucking, desperate, passionate fucking. Alexander didn't hesitate sinking his fangs into the others neck once again, moaning loudly as hot, metallic blood poured into his mouth, his own taste now mixed with his mates. He had to share, pulling Mikal into a biting kiss, blood spreading across their lips as their tongues tangled, adding an even more addictive flavor to the already mind blowing taste that was their mixed blood._

_Their movements continued, hard and fast, the only sounds in the room the slapping of hips and low moans. They lost count of how many times their fangs sank into each others skin, leaving each man covered with bruises and rivulets of sticky, red fluid._

_Alexander let out a quite annoyed sound with Mikal suddenly pulled back, completely leaving his still needy body. But, before he could even speak to complain, his mate had him flipped over, his body pressed flush against the sweaty sheets below him. The second time Mikal forced himself inside his body was much slower, sensual and torturing. His nails dug into the red sheets, his body screaming for the hard, uncontrolled fucking that mating demanded._

_He wasn't disappointed._

_Alexander barely felt Mikal hilt before the man was moving, holding his hips down against the bed as he positively slammed into his body. He could reach so much deeper this way. Fuck! And he'd found just the right angle to pound his prostate,leaving him unable to even beg under him. All he could do was moan and scream, wanting something more but not even able to focus long enough to figure out what the hell that was._

_Of course, Mikal knew. Mikal always knew. Alexander could feel his end coming close, his cock staining the sheets below them with precum every time his lover slammed into his body, forcing him almost painfully against the bed under them. His hands were gripping the headboard by then, just working on stopping himself from sliding up the bed with every violent thrust. He was trying to move against his lover but the man had him held immobile, using his body like he was a cheap whore._

_But fuck, that was what he needed right now. Alexander could taste his orgasm, his body strung so tight it was painful. But he needed something and Mikal knew what that was, for seconds before he screamed out his pleasure, he felt the younger vampire's fangs sink into his neck once again, fragile skin near ripping as he drank deep, their hips still moving desperately. Everything seemed to slow down, he could swear he felt his balls drawing up, before he was suddenly coming, screaming loud enough that everyone in the building would be able to hear it._

_Mikal was no quieter, his nails leaving crescent shaped cuts in Alexander's hips as he slammed inside him once more before releasing, filling him to the point of overflowing with thick, warm cum as his own cry of pleasure echoed through the room. It was oddly quiet after that, both men panting, trying to catch their breath. Then, Alexander spoke._

_“You better be ready for me to fuck you.”_

_Their night was only getting started._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Good memory?” Mikal asked with a grin, shielding Alexander from the prying eyes of passerby’s as he pressed his hand against his crotch, the man's cock fully hard and straining against his hand under his pants. 

“Hell yes.” Alexander husked out, his eyes flashing red for a moment before he licked his lips. “I believe a reenactment is in order.” His own hands slid around Mikal, gripping the other man's ass very inappropriately as he whispered in his ear. “I'm going to fuck you until you scream for mercy again... but this time I’m just going to keep going.” 

Mikal shuddered at the thought, his hand pressing against the front of Alexander's pants harder, stroking the length he knew would make him feel amazing. “Fuck, we need to get home. We need to get home now.” 

“Lets take the fast way.” Alexander responded, sealing their lips together before making them disappear from sight, using supernatural speed to get them home and in their bed in mere seconds. The night they had... greatly eclipsed even their mating. It was lucky they owned their own house for if they lived in an apartment with neighbors, they may have just thought they were killing each other and the blood smeared on their bodies would have been even more shocking. 

The next morning, both of them clean and pleasantly sated, Alexander couldn't help smiling. Mikal was asleep beside him, only rapidly disappearing bruises and a content smile marking the wild night they had. He couldn't help but think of everything they'd gone through to get to this point. The pain, the desperation, the absence... But they'd gotten through it and were only stronger for it. Nothing could make him happier than sharing himself with his mate, body, mind... and soul.


End file.
